THE RIGHT TO HEALTH IN PRISON: RESULTS OF A NATIONWIDE SURVEY AND REPORT Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) 3.27 The burden of HIV in prison is equally devastating. The epidemic of HIV infection in Malaysia is mainly driven by drug users, a population that is largely represented in prison due to the criminalisation of drug possession in the country. The Commission was informed that prisoners are sometimes screened for HIV infection upon entry with a segregation of prisoners testing positive. The Commission observed that access to HIV treatment in prison remains low, due to unavailability of expertise and resources to manage the disease. 3.28 During the survey,62 only 33 per cent (56 prisoners) reported receiving treatment for HIV, and were and using medication prior to admission while 29 per cent (49 prisoners) reported the continuation of treatment during imprisonment. Medical Treatment (Q: 1963) 3.29 71 per cent of the survey respondents (3,891) answered that they would approach a prison officer if they were unwell: 17 per cent (926 prisoners) stated that prison staff are responsible to provide immediate health treatment to prisoners; 14 per cent (763) believe that prison staff are the only authorised persons to send prisoners to the clinic/hospital for treatment. 3.30 In this regard, 53 per cent (2712) stated that they received immediate treatment after informing the authorities (Table 8). 23 per cent (1,180) stated that it took 1-2 days to receive any form of medical attention and 7 per cent (396) said it took longer than 2 days.64 Percentage based on total 170 prisoners which reported that they had HIV during imprisonment. In question 19, respondents were who they would inform if they were unwell. Answer options were “other inmates”, “prison staff”, “family”, “lawyer” or “others”. 64 In question 21, respondents were asked how long it took to receive medical attention after informing the prison authorities that they were unwell. 62 63 42